(Um hi. I'm alive.)

Peter gagged alongside Ava at the mere smell of the high school. It hit them as soon as they stepped up to the stairs that lead to the front entrance. It wasn't quite as bad as the sewer punishment, but it came close in second in the stench department.

"You have to actually try to stink up a place to get it to smell so bad," Ava complained, covering her nose. Peter felt bad for her. Her enhance sense of smell was more powerful then his.

"What are you guys talking about?" Sam scoffed irritably. "It smells like the air."

"It's probably them," Peter pointed towards the rude jocks that taunted anyone with a smaller stature. Don't they have better things to do with their morning? Like, I don't know, do school stuff?

"Come on, webs," Ava pulled on his sleeve as he glared slightly at them. Peter didn't fail to notice that he was slightly smaller then most other guys his age there as well. Exactly the type those idiots were picking on.

The front of the building was tall and intimidating. It bathed the students in shadow as they veered toward to entrance, most ignoring the guys there. They paid normal kids no mind, so Peter though him and the team were safe from having sodas dumped down their shirts. No such luck.

A big guy with blonde hair and a letterman's jacket seemed to be the leader (a/n I'm going off of actual Flash's description from the comics here.) His eyes scanned over their group of five before catching sight of Peter next to Ava. A slow shit eating grin spit his face that the arachnid definitely didn't like. He glared back at the large boy as his team shepherd him into the building. It only seemed to encourage whatever blond jock was thinking.

Nice going Spider, Peter thought bitterly. You just gave him a reason to annoy you. Or Parker, now, I guess. Good job, Parker.

He was not going to walk into school as the missing son of Tony Stark. So he came up with the fake last name. The Avengers had thankfully agreed rather quickly. His friends just used their real names since their parents were not - er - as well known. And they were all dead, as far as they knew. Peter had thought that about his parents too, though, so...

He shook the thought away. Now was not the time.

"Ew," Sam pulled a face as he watched a kid use a drinking fountain. "Do we all have to share that?"

"Probably," Luke shrugged.

Danny adjusted his backpack while studying the river of students. "It is normal."

A short shot of spidey sense flicked Peter in the brain just before someone shouldered their way roughly in between Ava and him. They continued walking down the hall as if nothing had happened.

"Hey!" Peter shouted angrily and jerked them back by their backpack. "We were standing right here!"

The random kid glanced up at him in fear. "Suh-Sorry. It was an accident!"

The fear on his face struck a cord in Peter. He thought people were finished looking at him like that since he had left Hydra. He thought that it was only Hydra that had that effect on him. But apparently not - it was his own doing.

He released his grip on the younger boy's backpack abruptly, hiding his shamed face. "Sorry–I...sorry. Just not having the best day, y'know?"

"Yeah," The kid pulled his backpack back and offered a hesitant smile. "It's okay, man. Hope it gets better, though."

Peter tilted his head. He wasn't mad? Just like that? "Uh...thanks. You too."

"Hopefully," the younger boy chuckled. "First day of high school and I already have food on my shirt."

He picked at the damp spot on his shirt that had trickled from his head. His buzzed hair hadn't been enough to stop the drink from dripping onto the red fabric. Peter dimly remembered the jerks outside spilling soda on smaller kids.

He did remember Scott's tips on making friends loud and clear though.

The arachnid stuck out hand. "I'm Peter. Peter Parker."

"Miles Morales," the dark skinned boy shook his hand with a smile.

"Oh and this is Ava," Peter gestured to the girl standing awkwardly next to the pair. She waved a little.

"Hi," Miles grinned at her. She gave a tight smile in return.

"Peter, Ava! C'mon we gotta find out where locker...um...367 is!" Luke yelled from a ways down the hall, squinting at the small numbers on his paper.

Peter and Ava shared an eye roll. "We'll see you later Miles."

The small teen beamed at his words. "Okay."

Then he turned and almost skipped down the hallway. Was everyone that excited to meet new people? Maybe he was just naturally positive. Peter hadn't met many people like that. And by not many people he meant not anyone.

The five of them went off to find Luke's locker. At some point they decided that they would find them in order of height, which Peter thought was totally unfair. He should have gone before Ava! He was two inches taller then her. But none of the boys wanted her in a bad mood by calling her the shortest so they instead chose their fearless leader. Some team you are, Peter thought with a pout.

A shriek pierced his ears painfully in the middle of a nervous conversation with Danny. Peter gasped and clutched his ears at the sound. Ava did the same with a groan. Luke winced but was otherwise okay. The horrid sound lasted nearly five seconds.

"What the hell was that?" Peter asked, rubbing his ringing ears.

Sam glanced around at students hurrying to different rooms quickly. "That was the bell, bug breath."

"Oh really?" He snapped back sarcastically. He then deflated as students glanced over curiously. Gotta work on the anger, remember, Parker?

"You asked!" Sam threw his hands in the air defensively.

Peter glared at him in return. "You didn't have to be a jerk about it!"

"Whatever!"

"Fine!"

"Fine!"

Danny stepped smoothly in between them. "We should all get to class."

Both the boys humfed in irritation, but agreed with the chill ninja. Luke and Ava read all of their schedules out loud. Tony had managed to get them in most classes together, but a few they were separated. They all, at least, had homeroom together.

Ava pulled Peter off to their AP chemistry class while the other three went in the other direction. The arachnid knew it was going to be an interesting day as soon as the teacher introduced herself as Ms. Hill.

——————————

The man watched the red and white dots blink on the screen with interest, fingers curled around his chin. The blue, green and yellow dots weren't far away from them, only a fifty yards or so.

"What did you say this place was again?" He asked one of his minions.

They replied quickly. "A...high school, sir."

"Called?"

"Um..." the minion squinted their eyes at the screen. "Midtown Technologies, sir."

The man hummed in acknowledgement. So Stark has them going to school...an unpredicted move on his part, but also a stupid one. It only makes their weakness so much more obvious...

"Sir?" His second minion asked hesitantly.

"What?" He snapped in irritation.

The minion gulped. "Sorry, sir, but I was just wondering...what are you going to have us do with this information?"

The man narrowed his eyes at the glowing red dot as it shifted back and forth. So many problems caused by that one dot. He could send in troops to kill him now, along with his betraying team...or he could use them to his advantage. Patience was a required virtue when sitting in a chair as high as the man's.

A sinister smile grew on his face, making his two minions share a pale look behind him.

"Tell me," the man mused. "What happens when a Hydra looses a head?"

The minions blinked at the familiar saying. "...two more grow back in its place." They stared in unison.

"So if the Spider and his team were a head...what in theory would happen if that team were lost?"

"...two more teams would...grow back in their place..."

The man turned his evil grin back to the screen. He couldn't wait until that annoying red dot was snuffed out for good. And with the plan slowly forming in his head, it wouldn't take long.

"Exactly," Strucker tapped the screen. "Project Ultimate is old news. Some toys you have to throw away...

"...but then you can replace them with better play things. I think it's about time we resumed the Warriors project."

—————————

*evil, maniacal, crazy laughter*

I'm sorta mixing like all the Spider-Man everything - movies, comics, cartoons - into one book, but it's mostly the MCU and Ultimate Spider-Man. So...yeah don't worry I'll explain everything.

- Wanda